Andrew Paranavitana

Andrew Paranavitana, an Independent Artist and Photographer based in Melbourne, Australia

I am inspired by the world every day. It's people, places, landscapes and cultures are a visual feast and sensory overload at times. Simple things that often get taken for granted or go unnoticed can be a virtual playgound to a person with a camera in hand. My art strongly focuses on the psychology of dark emotional states of mind and has been inspired by my own experiences, trauma, and processes of healing. Within this focus, I have divided the work into two main categories: darkness and light. My work explores the dualities found between the two, in opposition to each other or in co-existential crises. The physical appearance of my work is a depiction of the emotional states of mind that we often experience throughout life, the darker the image, the heavier and more intense the emotional expression within the piece. I often delve into themes of adversity, fear, and the overcoming thereof, the eternal quest for freedom and hope, and a search for answers surrounded timelines of experience and trauma that can twist and shape us into who we become.